Who Is The Most Successful IPL Captain Ever: The 15th edition of the biggest, richest T20 leagues in the world is set to kick-off on March 26 with Chennai Super Kings, the defending champions, taking on the runner-ups, Kolkata Knight Riders, at the Wankhede Stadium.
The Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 marks a turning point in the history of the tournament as two new franchises – Gujarat Titans and Lucknow Super Giants – are added making the IPL a 10-team tournament; a mega-auction took place last month that has got the squads reshuffled.
Fans would be wondering with 14 seasons gone by, who is the best captain in the tournament’s history so far. Statistically, there are only two top contenders: Rohit Sharma and MS Dhoni.
Rohit has led Mumbai Indians to a record 5 IPL titles; Dhoni has led CSK to four, and captained Rising Pune Supergiant in one season, but didn’t lead the RPSG for the second season.
Rohit has led MI from 2013 and has bagged 5 titles, while Dhoni skippered CSK in 12 IPL seasons for four titles. However, Mumbai missed the playoffs in 2016, 2018, and 2021, while CSK have missed the playoffs only once in 2020 in their 12-season history, making them the most consistent side to reach the top four in the IPL.
What do the overall match numbers say?
Well, Dhoni has captained CSK in 204 IPL matches, winning 121 of those, with a win percentage of 59.60; Rohit Sharma has led MI to 75 match victories out of 129 matches, marginally beating Dhoni on win percentage with 59.68.
Virat Kohli, on the other hand, led RCB in 140 IPL games, registering wins in 64 of them-a win percentage of 48.16.
2-time IPL winning skipper Gautam Gambhir has led Delhi Daredevils and Kolkata Knight Riders in a total of 129 Indian Premier League matches, recording 71 wins – a win percentage of 55.42.
Adam Gilchrist and David Warner, Indian Premier League winning captains with Deccan Chargers and Sunrisers Hyderabad respectively, have both won 35 IPL matches each as skipper, followed by Shane Warne (30 wins as captain), who marched Rajasthan Royals to the inaugural title in 2008.
